Concussions have dropped significantly: CFL

The CFL has tracked concussions for five years, according to Postmedia reporter Dan Barnes, and the number of head injuries has dropped since 2015.

Reported concussions during the regular season totalled 44 in 2014 and 45 in 2015, then dropped to 32 in 2016 and 33 last year.

“I’m happy to say our concussion numbers have gone down,” said Kevin McDonald, vice-president of football operations and player safety. “But it could be that more guys just aren’t telling us, which is why we focus on education in training camp. We walk them through a detailed presentation that reminds them of the importance of letting somebody know if you’re not quite feeling yourself, so it can get looked at and properly assessed and go through the steps that ensure a player has the chance to recover properly.”

New helmets could be helping the decline in concussions. However, the Canadian Football League Players’ Association filed a grievance against the CFL and all nine member clubs in March alleging that the league and its teams “have failed and continue to fail” to protect players from brain injuries and concussions.

While commissioner Randy Ambrosie hasn’t seen enough evidence to be convinced that concussions can lead to CTE, he’s committed to making the game “better and safer for our players.”

Honestly… I thought the whole thing was that it wasn’t concussions that was leading to CTE but rather the constant contact. Qb’s, runningbacks and receivers get the most concussions but the players on the offensive and defensive line are the ones getting CTE more often.

This is what happens when Lions Linebacker and Headhunter extraordinaire, Micah Awe isn’t a member of any CFL organization.
Further good news. He was quickly released by New York too, so the NFL is a little safer as well.
He might have to look for another job in which targeting people’s heads is part of the job description.
Perhaps a Civil service position?

A study published by Brain, a neurology journal, linked repetitive subconcussive hits to the head to chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE). It’s not just concussions that cause brain damage. So, even if the reported number is down, damage in another form goes on. It’s the nature of the game.
Because developing brains are most at risk, the Concussion Legacy Foundation has launched an initiative promoting flag football for all kids under the age of 14.

Ambrosie seems to be on the right track most of the time.
For him to say something so totally ignorant about concussions must mean only one of two things: league lawyers have muzzled him in order to preserve their collective a$$es in litigation…or Ambrosie is concussed after slapping his forehead repeatedly in disbelief at how totally dysfunctional the Als management team is.